Also in WSJ.com:

Markets Pulse

Alcoa Earnings Lift Sentiment in Asia

By Daniel Inman

Asian stocks were mostly higher on Wednesday after the results season kicked off in the U.S., with the Hong Kong market rising ahead of China’s next batch of economic data.

Regional markets were making a recovery after the MSCI All Countries Asia Ex-Japan index lost a combined 0.8% across Monday and Tuesday—a decline that came about after the initial relief over last week’s fiscal cliff deal faded, leaving markets looking for fresh catalysts to extend the rally that started in late 2012.

The U.S. earnings season kicked off overnight Tuesday, as aluminum company Alcoa announced that it swung to a profit in the fourth quarter—the first U.S. company to report quarterly earnings. The focus in Asia is now on Intel’s earnings next week, which could have a knock-on effect on regional technology stocks.

Aluminum Corp. of China was up 1.1% in Hong Kong following Alcoa’s results, while resource company Alumina climbed 4.6% in Sydney.

There were also some very early, albeit mixed, signs on Asian earnings from Japan, where two convenience store operators released their third quarter earnings. Seven & i Holdings gained 1.8% after reporting a third quarter operating profit rise of 5% year-on-year; while FamilyMart slid 4.2% after the company’s third quarter results showed a 3% year-on-year fall in quarterly operating profits.

The main economic event on the Asian horizon remains the next batch of Chinese economic data. On Thursday, China will release trade data for December, followed by inflation figures on Friday.

Markets in China were mixed ahead of the data, with the Hang Seng Index up 0.5% at 23218.47, while the Shanghai Composite was flat at 2275.34 in more cautious trading.

In the foreign exchange market, the U.S. dollar gained against the yen, at ¥87.55 late in Asian trading compared with ¥87.06 late Tuesday in New York, making a significant recovery from the 0.9% loss the greenback made against the yen overnight.

“The yen’s resurgence was not something unexpected after falling so much over such a protracted period,” said Yoshihiro Okumura, general manager at Chibagin Asset Management. “The market expects that it will resume its weakening trajectory.”

The Nikkei Stock Average recovered from early losses after the yen trimmed gains against the dollar. The index ended up 0.7% at 10578.57, with financial companies providing support: Nomura Holdings was up 3.5% and Dai-Ichi Life Insurance rose 2.5%.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.4% to close at 4708.10, supported by defensive stocks. High-yielding stocks in sectors such as banking and telecoms posted gains: National Australia Bank was up 1% and Telstra Corp. gained 0.5%.

Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh Index ended up 0.4%, on news the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange would widen its daily trading band to 7% from 5% from Tuesday.

Stocks in Vietnam have already soared 8.5% so-far this year, making the small market a strong performer in the region, on expectations that the State Securities Commission will introduce plans to attract more foreign investors.

South Korea’s Kospi Composite was down 0.3% at 1991.81 while Singapore’s FTSE Straits Times Index up 0.3% at 3213.77.